A $2,500 fee for bars to close at 4 a.m. during the Republican National Convention is going over like a watered-down drink.

The number of establishments that have asked St. Paul for a 4 a.m. license stands at zero, and convention co-host city Minneapolis has dropped its fee to $100 in some cases.

Meanwhile, restaurant and hotel bars that normally close at 2 a.m. in Bloomington are simply being asked to let the city know if they plan to stay open later.

“We did the calculations. It just wasn’t feasible for us,” said Pete Bauchle, general manager of St. Paul’s Crowne Plaza Hotel.

The Crowne Plaza is hosting the Texas delegation during the convention. Other hotels will be jammed with 9,000 delegates, all descending on the Twin Cities for one of the biggest political fetes in the country.

St. Paul had expected hotels to pony up the $2,500 fee for a 4 a.m. license during the four-day event, which runs from Sept. 1-4 at the Xcel Energy Center. But so far, that’s not the case.

Members of the St. Paul City Council, which enacted the fee, shrugged their shoulders at the news.

“I was against it in the first place,” said Council Member Lee Helgen, who has dealt with several bar-related problems in his Ward 5.

The city restricted eligible applicants to large bars and restaurants, eliminating one of council members’ primary concerns — that smaller neighborhood bars would be open late during the convention, forcing the Police Department to beef up its early-morning patrols.

In Minneapolis, nine establishments have applied for 4 a.m. permits, including three strip clubs; popular nightclubs such as Aqua and First Avenue; and bars such as Brothers, The Local and The Saloon.

But on July 21, the Minneapolis City Council amended its licensing requirements, requiring those hosting private events to pay just $100 for a 4 a.m. license. So far, 12 establishments have asked for those, including Nicollet Island Pavilion, Graves 601 Hotel, Dakota Jazz Club, Cafe Lurcat and Fine Line Music Cafe.

Josh Petzel, general manager of The Local, said he’s counting on revelers wandering in to make up the $2,500 fee. Located in a high-traffic area of Nicollet Mall, the bar usually draws a large out-of-town contingent.

“We’re obviously relying on foot traffic,” Petzel said.

To some, the numbers show a lack of interest in the kind of big parties that were expected when the convention was announced. Big venues such as the Guthrie Theater have bookings, but a convention bounce at some of the mid-sized and smaller establishments may not be coming.

Jim Farrell, executive director of the Minnesota Licensed Beverage Association, said there just doesn’t seem to be the interest in late-night parties that everyone predicted.

“You have to give somebody a big incentive to want to work that late, and I just don’t think the incentive was there,” Farrell said.

A representative of St. Paul Mayor Chris Coleman’s office said the city is exploring its options regarding the license but said no changes are expected.

At the Seville Club, an upscale downtown Minneapolis gentleman’s club, owner Dino Perlman said he doesn’t know how the 4 a.m. closing would work since it has never been done before. Perlman said there was no calculation that convention-goers and strippers go hand-in-hand, and he expects many of his patrons will be Twin Cities natives.

In Bloomington, where most of the delegate hotel rooms are, the city asked bars with 2 a.m. licenses to let them know if they planned to be open later. Bars that normally close at 1 a.m. can pay $200 for the 2 a.m. license and would be allowed to stay open later during the convention.

A dozen establishments have signed up for the 4 a.m. license, most of them hotels.

“It was more of a registration. We just wanted to know where everyone was,” said Doug Junker, license examiner for the city.

Although Minneapolis pushed its license application deadline back a week to Monday, St. Paul has set no such timeline.

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